As soon as a beginner has
grasped the basic fly casting skills it is a
good idea to introduce hauling. Depending on
the individual, the double haul can often be
introduced after three or four hours of
tuition (so long as there has been additional
practice). Hauling has a huge effect on loop
control. And since loop control is the key to
good fly casting learning to haul is really
quite important.

Hauling (for those who have
no idea what I'm on about) is where the
non-rod hand pulls line back through the
rings during the casting stroke. It gives
dramatic results, firstly it can be used to
force a greater bend in the rod than would
otherwise be obtainable, and certainly a
greater bend with little increase in effort,
and also it vastly increases the speed that
the line travels through the air.

The double-haul is where the
haul is made on both the forward and the
backwards casts. Single hauls are also useful
- especially for beating the wind.

There are two basic faults in
the double haul. The first is failure to get
your hands together during the pause in the
backcast - as you can imagine non-drifters of
the racing variety have problems here (if
this makes no sense you haven't been paying
attention) - which leads to an ineffective
second haul. The second fault is slack line
between the hauling hand and the butt ring -
and depending on how this happens, generally
means an uncompressed rod at some point
during the stoke - too hasty.

There are many ways of
teaching the double haul. Without doubt the
most effective way is for the instructor to
do the hauling for the pupil: this is a fast
method and in most cases it teaches the pupil
in less than two or three minutes.

Another common method is to
use the "DownUp" hand movement
description; "DownUp" being one
word - emphasis on the "Down".
However it should really be
"Down-and-Up", because time has to
be given for the rodtip to unbend and the
loop travel backwards - the best time to go
"Up" is during that little
backwards drift we talked of earlier. If we
do it too soon we end up unbending the rod -
and just at the time when we want to be
bending it to it's maximum.

Some guys teach without rods
and lines - and (perhaps surprisingly) this
can also be effective. Another method which
has been shown to me and I have used to good
effect (especially useful for those who can't
seem to grasp the method when you help them
do it) is to get the caster to perform
side-casts using the double haul, but on the
backcast actually allowing the line to land
on some water (or field, or whatever - short
cut grass is great for this as it eliminates
the need for the lift element of the cast).
This gives a very long pause (indefinitely)
which allows the caster to see if his hands
are together, look for slack line and
generally slow things down. Also it gives
more feel in the forward haul because the
caster gets to beat gravity in both
directions - a common statement a learner
makes is "I don't seem to feel the
forward haul doing anything".

Some or all of these
techniques are required - but without a doubt
if the instructor can get away with the
first, then he should go for it. Double
hauling is easy and contrary to most people's
opinion does not require superhuman
co-ordination. It's an essential skill and
should be taught as quickly as possible -
before all that self-doubt creeps in. It's
really great to see the results of teaching
hauling; the pupils often feel such a sense
of achievement and the results can be really
quite phenomenal.

For basic teaching often the
easiest way to teach timing is to time the
start of the haul to the start of the casting
stroke. However the most effective time to
haul is as near to the stop as possible. For
those really tight, sexy (yes I had to start
using this word to describe loops at some
point) loops the haul should be made at the
point of the tip-snap, wrist-flick,
positive-stop or whatever you want to call
it. For more open loops the hauls can be made
more throughout the stroke.

This is a very important point. And not one I have seen written about very often. So let me say it again: the
correct time to apply the haul is not as the stroke is being make, but rather as the rod is being stopped. So how the hell
do you learn this??!! Easy. Every time you squeeze the rod into the stop, say 'stop' to yourself (!). After this is drilled
into your mind, replace the 'stop' word with 'haul' or 'down' (of the down-and-up).

Hauling at the stop will give you a tight loop. Hauling throughout the stroke will give you an open loop. You can use this! Throw a tight loop into the wind and a open loop with it! Therefore with a tailing wind, time your haul at the stop in the backcast, and throughout the stroke on the forward cast.

More improvement can be made
to line speed by working on haul timing and hauling
speed rather than rod-hand speed. Really
dramatic results come from really fast hauls
- work on your hauling speed:- distance
travelled with the haul is less important
than velocity. A fast haul is one of the
secrets to V-shape loops (the other is a relaxed stop).

And now for my greatest tip
of all (so far): for the most dramatic
effects, stop the haul at precisely
the same moment that you stop the rod. In
order to ensure a fully synchronised stop I
finish the forward haul with a straight
hauling arm; I find that I can get a real
'snap' when I straighten my arm, and if I
make that snap at exactly the same moment as
I make my wrist-snap... well, this one of the
secrets behind 'sexyloops', and it works for me,
every time!

Everyone has heard of the benefits of an abrupt stop of the rod.
How many have thought of the importance of an abrupt stop of the haul?
Straightening the haul from the elbow allows that abrupt stop.